Transparency International says corruption holds back global cooperation on climate change policy.
Corruption threatens to “derail” global cooperation to tackle climate change, according to graft watchdog Transparency International (TI).
The watchdog’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) for 2024, published on Tuesday, reported that many nations crucial to climate diplomacy have seen their scores decline.
Overall, the CPI found that global corruption remained “alarmingly high” last year.
More than two-thirds of the 180 countries ranked had scores below 50 out of 100. The global average was unchanged from 2023 at 43.
While 32 countries have made significant progress against corruption since 2012, 148 countries have stagnated or declined over the same period, TI noted, adding that the results underscore ‘the urgent need for concrete action against corruption”.
‘Devastating’
TI noted the “devastating” effect of global corruption on the fight against climate change.
“Amidst record-breaking global heating and extreme weather events, corruption is exacerbating the climate crisis,” the report read.
The watchdog warned of the effects of corruption on climate-vulnerable countries and key international climate conferences. Countries, including hosts of high-profile events like United Nations climate summits, are seeing declining CPI scores, it said.
Brazil, for example, the host of this year’s UN COP30 climate talks, received a score of 34, its lowest-ever rating. Wealthier countries which also lead climate talks like the United States, received a score of 65.
The report also highlighted the growing risk to billions of dollars of life-saving climate finance, often in countries that need it the most. South Africa, Vietnam and Indonesia exemplify how corruption is derailing climate initiatives, it read.
The countries most exposed to climate change were among those with the lowest scores, including South Sudan, Somalia and Venezuela.
“Corrupt forces not only shape but often dictate policies and dismantle checks and balances,” Transparency International CEO Maira Martini said in a statement.
“We must urgently root out corruption before it fully derails meaningful climate action.”
The report said the one solution to tackle corruption and make sure funds are used efficiently, would be to have better “metrics and frameworks for climate transparency and accountability”.
The watchdog also said that enhancing anticorruption bodies would help deter environmental crimes and reduce impunity.
The international watchdog’s CPI ranks 180 countries according to levels of public-sector corruption and is calculated using independent data sources.
A score of zero is considered “highly corrupt”; a score of 100 “very clean”.